1.1. Big white cathedral (starting point): officially called Nossa Senhora da Conceição the cathedral (as it is mostly known) or demon’s cathedral was built in the 1930’s – 1940’s by Marcial simões Freitas e costa, who was a deputy director of the railways at the time and worked free of charge. The construction was a major feat for the catholic church of the time, which was still reeling under the effects of the revolution of the 1910 in Portugal and had a very weak presence in Mozambique.

This was one of the places in the city were hundreds of people had the opportunity to see Pope Franscisco during his visit to Mozambique (3^rd to 6^th September, 2019). The second but not least important visit we have had of a Pope. J

Inside there is art work by Francisco Franco (statue of the sacred Heart of Christ, the baptismal figures, the bronze doors), Simões Freitas (the marble statues), and Antonio Lino (marble altars). The stained glass windows were produced in the Netherlands during the war. Today we can see different patterns on the stained glasses as result of an incident that happened in 2007 (explosion of a bunker) and caused a lot of destruction and deaths in Maputo.

Nossa Senhora da Conceição is a nice example of the lots of Art Deco buildings we have in Maputo. Some people even say that if we join all the Art Deco buildings we have in Maputo, this could maybe be a little Miami

1.2. Town hall : was designed and built in the 1940’s by architects Carlos César dos Santos, Franz Keindl and Aranaldo Pacheco Pereira Leite. In front of it, in the Lisbon – style pavement used to be inscribed the words, “Aqui é Portugal”, this is Portugal, the words of president Américo Tomás when he visited Mozambique in 1964. Instead of the present day statue of Samora Machel, there used to be equestrian statue of Mousinho de Albulquerque (now in the fort). The building together with the cathedral used to be the pride of Portuguese Mozambique.

Inside we have nice models of the old Lourenço Marques (present day Maputo) and a nice hall to see.

1.3. Statue of the first president: The Samora Machel Statueis a bronze sculpture located in the center of Praça da Independência. The statue depicts Samora Machel (1933-1986), military, revolutionary, and the first President of Mozambique. The statue was designed and constructed in Pyongyang, North Korea by the Mansudae Overseas Projects, an arm of the Mansudae Art Studio. It stands 9 metres  and weighs 4.8 tons. The statue sits on a marble slab 2.7 metres high at the head of Samora Machel Avenue, and is illuminated at night. The statue has been criticized for bearing little resemblance to Samora. The Samora Machel Statue sits in front of Maputo City Hall on the spot formerly occupied by a statue of  Mouzinho de Albuquerque,General of Portuguese Mozambique from 1896 to 1897.

The statue was inaugurated on October 19, 2011, the 25th anniversary of Machel’s death in an aircraft crash on the convergence of the borders of Mozambique, Swaziland and South Africa. Armando Guebuza, the President of Mozambique, led the construction of the statue and its inauguration ceremony, which was attended by numerous foreign dignitaries.

the French Mozambican cultural center is today one of the busiest cultural centers in town, with lots of cultural events (live music, photo expositions, ect).

The building was originally built by Dr. Eduardo de Almeida Saldanha to be a social club and a casino in 1989 (the same year Lourenço Marques became the capital of Mozambique). The architects were Wells Inc. of Lourenço Marques and the builders were Rochelle & Smith of Johannesburg. The ironwork was imported from Scotland. But the concession for a casino was not given, so the grandiose plans of Saldanha came to nothing. He sold the building to two Englishmen who made it into the famous “Hotel clube” in 1906. In 1917 it was enlarged and an annex with 50 rooms was built. After being derelict for a long time, the French converted it into a cultural center in the 1990’s.

Inside, apart from the exposition room and the stage we can see artwork by Gonçalo Mabunda, one of the most popular artists in Mozambique in modern days – with his planes, chairs, etc made out of bullets, guns and Iron.

designed by Gustave Eiffel, the building was brought pre-fabricated from Belgium in 1892 and assembled outside what was the town by those days. He liked neither the building (lets imagine why – an iron house in a hot country like Mozambique + no air conditioners) nor the isolated site. So the court of justice was supposed to move in but did not want to. It ended up as a girl school of the sisters Hospitallers to be closed when religious orders were removed from public schools after the revolution of 1910 and was later as offices. In 1972 it was moved to the present site to house a geographical museum, with displays also showing how an office would have looked at the time of the Portuguese geographical expeditions. Today it houses the cultural heritage authority of Mozambique.

One of the most beautiful and green spaces in Maputo. If you do the tour on Saturday you will find it even more interesting as you will see a lot of wedding celebrations going on – a lot of dancing, singing and happiness.

But no matter the day you do the tour, the big fruit bats will be there for you (a bit of safari in the city).

Before independence, the garden was called Vasco da Gama, in homage to the Portuguese explorer but right after independence the name changed, just like the name of the city, avenues, etc (we will explain you during the tour the reason why we had all these changes).

The local horticulture and floriculture society had already occupied the lower part of the terrain since 1885. The upper part was originally the garden of the villa Joia. Thomas honey joined the two together in 1907 and designed them the way they are now. Thomas honey had previously designed gardens to the sultan of Turkey and the king of Greece. The entrance arch in neo – Manueline style was put up in 1924 on the occasion of the 400^th anniversary of Vasco da Gama’s death.

Inside the gardens it is also possible to see a small cast iron “wallace” water fountain with four caryatides supporting a dome made by Fonderies d’Art du Val d’Osne in 1872. Many of these still exist in Paris and are named after the benefactor, Sir Richard Wallace, who erected them in order to provide safe drinking water.  How did it come to Maputo? On theory  it was brought  here as a gift  by French Engineer  Eugène François Tissot, who had acquired the Lourenço Marques  drinking water concession in1985. Tissot incidentally met a dramatic death – he first killed his wife and daughter and them himself with a pistol.

The best market in Maputo – fresh and clean – was built in 1901 by David Carvalho with iron elements imported from Belgium.

Come here if you want to get ingredients for a very Mozambican dish. You can buy here Cassava leaves to prepare the famous Matapa with prawns and even get tips from the ladies on how to make it.

Mozambique offers the most the most delicious dishes distilled from its fascinating and rich history. Arabic, Portuguese, Chinese, British and Indian influences have all been integrated using indigenous ingredients and cooking methods. The Portuguese influence has greatly impacted the cuisine of Mozambique, such as, Mandioca (a starchy root of Brazilian origin), cashew nuts (also from Brazil) and bread

The use of spices and seasonings such as onions, garlic, sweet peppers, bay leaves, lemons, fresh coriander, paprika, cinnamon and of course “piripiri” chill peppers, with wine (also introduced by the Portuguese)

Over the time, the culinary skills of the local chefs and women have developed into an unique and delicious array of stews and curries. But it is often simplicity that offers the most delicious experience. Seafood is fresh and abundant and so grilled prawns, lobsters, calamari and a variety of tropical fish and clams are with just salt, a squeeze of lemon, garlic and perhaps a dash of piripiri (hot chili sauce). Eating local traditional dishes, that differ slightly with location in the country, such as Matapa, will be fulfilling experience to any visitor.

If you get Matapa or something else in the market, I sure the ladies will even help you, giving you tips on how to prepare it

We also stop to try some local fruits – Massala, Ata, Coração de boi, or the one that calls your attention.

organize text

the mosque on Rua da mesquita was the first mosque in Maputo, stated in wood and zinc as most of the constructions in this area. The lower façade is of 1887, with parts added on in 1902, the mosque itself is new. This was the area where the Indian population lived.

The mosque also shows how good the relations between the different religious groups are, considering that this southern part of the country is mostly Christian and the biggest part of the Muslim community is on the northern part of the country. The country is mostly Christian but there are no religious conflicts between the most different religious groups.

It is sometimes said to be the most beautiful in the southern Africa. The Maputo central station is on an America magazine list of the most beautiful train stations worldwide as the 3^rd most beautiful. We are not going to tell you which ones make the Top Ten list and will keep it as a surprise for when we go in the train station and see the photo exposition of the list.

The train station was built in 1908 – 1910 and designed by Alfredo Augusto Lisboa de Lima, Mário Veiga and José Cristian da Paula Ferreira da Costa (and not Gustave Eiffel as some people believe), and constructed by the local builders Buccellato & Brother. Pietro Buccellato did all the work on stucco; the cupola was pre-fabricated in south Africa. Two old steam locomotives can be seen displayed when you enter. One of them =, the Gaza or No.1 used to travel on the narrow gauge railroad between Xai-Xai and Manjacaze and the branch line beyond, the other was the first model to run between Maputo and Pretoria. There are not many passanger trains running anymore and they essentially serve poorer suburbs south Africa and Marracuene. Near the end of the rails on the left in the former waiting room is an active gallery run by the cultural organization Kulungwana. Before the gallery you can also stop for a drink or lunch in the Xitimela (train) restaurant.

The train station is quite popular. Some of the scenes for the movie blood diamond by Leonardo DiCaprio were shot here.

New Orleans in Maputo, that is the feeling most people who have been to New Orleans have when they walk through this street. Called Araujo street before independence, the street started as a residencies street, but because of its location – close to the harbor –  it started to become a bit busier with lots of hotels, bars, most of them run down nowadays. it is a treasure of French colonial architecture with buildings with their iron pillars and varandas during the day, and the street that doesn’t sleep during the night. Bagamoyo is a red light district and the street where Leonardo DiCaprio had other set of scenes for the movie Blood Diomond

Tuk Tuks or “Txopelas”(how they are called in Mozambique) are a good option for anyone intersted in moving around the city at an affordable price. This tour allows us to combine the different tours we have an see most of what our lovely city has to offer –  from the most emblematic spots in the downtown of the city to museums and arts and crafts markets at the upper part of city.

Contact us for more information or book now.

1.1. Big white cathedral (starting point): officially called Nossa Senhora da Conceição the cathedral (as it is mostly known) or demon’s cathedral was built in the 1930’s – 1940’s by Marcial simões Freitas e costa, who was a deputy director of the railways at the time and worked free of charge. The construction was a major feat for the catholic church of the time, which was still reeling under the effects of the revolution of the 1910 in Portugal and had a very weak presence in Mozambique.

This was one of the places in the city were hundreds of people had the opportunity to see Pope Franscisco during his visit to Mozambique (3^rd to 6^th September, 2019). The second but not least important visit we have had of a Pope. J

Inside there is art work by Francisco Franco (statue of the sacred Heart of Christ, the baptismal figures, the bronze doors), Simões Freitas (the marble statues), and Antonio Lino (marble altars). The stained glass windows were produced in the Netherlands during the war. Today we can see different patterns on the stained glasses as result of an incident that happened in 2007 (explosion of a bunker) and caused a lot of destruction and deaths in Maputo.

Nossa Senhora da Conceição is a nice example of the lots of Art Deco buildings we have in Maputo. Some people even say that if we join all the Art Deco buildings we have in Maputo, this could maybe be a little Miami

1.2. Town hall : was designed and built in the 1940’s by architects Carlos César dos Santos, Franz Keindl and Aranaldo Pacheco Pereira Leite. In front of it, in the Lisbon – style pavement used to be inscribed the words, “Aqui é Portugal”, this is Portugal, the words of president Américo Tomás when he visited Mozambique in 1964. Instead of the present day statue of Samora Machel, there used to be equestrian statue of Mousinho de Albulquerque (now in the fort). The building together with the cathedral used to be the pride of Portuguese Mozambique.

Inside we have nice models of the old Lourenço Marques (present day Maputo) and a nice hall to see.

1.3. Statue of the first president: The Samora Machel Statueis a bronze sculpture located in the center of Praça da Independência. The statue depicts Samora Machel (1933-1986), military, revolutionary, and the first President of Mozambique. The statue was designed and constructed in Pyongyang, North Korea by the Mansudae Overseas Projects, an arm of the Mansudae Art Studio. It stands 9 metres  and weighs 4.8 tons. The statue sits on a marble slab 2.7 metres high at the head of Samora Machel Avenue, and is illuminated at night. The statue has been criticized for bearing little resemblance to Samora. The Samora Machel Statue sits in front of Maputo City Hall on the spot formerly occupied by a statue of  Mouzinho de Albuquerque,General of Portuguese Mozambique from 1896 to 1897.

The statue was inaugurated on October 19, 2011, the 25th anniversary of Machel’s death in an aircraft crash on the convergence of the borders of Mozambique, Swaziland and South Africa. Armando Guebuza, the President of Mozambique, led the construction of the statue and its inauguration ceremony, which was attended by numerous foreign dignitaries.

the French Mozambican cultural center is today one of the busiest cultural centers in town, with lots of cultural events (live music, photo expositions, ect).

The building was originally built by Dr. Eduardo de Almeida Saldanha to be a social club and a casino in 1989 (the same year Lourenço Marques became the capital of Mozambique). The architects were Wells Inc. of Lourenço Marques and the builders were Rochelle & Smith of Johannesburg. The ironwork was imported from Scotland. But the concession for a casino was not given, so the grandiose plans of Saldanha came to nothing. He sold the building to two Englishmen who made it into the famous “Hotel clube” in 1906. In 1917 it was enlarged and an annex with 50 rooms was built. After being derelict for a long time, the French converted it into a cultural center in the 1990’s.

Inside, apart from the exposition room and the stage we can see artwork by Gonçalo Mabunda, one of the most popular artists in Mozambique in modern days – with his planes, chairs, etc made out of bullets, guns and Iron.

designed by Gustave Eiffel, the building was brought pre-fabricated from Belgium in 1892 and assembled outside what was the town by those days. He liked neither the building (lets imagine why – an iron house in a hot country like Mozambique + no air conditioners) nor the isolated site. So the court of justice was supposed to move in but did not want to. It ended up as a girl school of the sisters Hospitallers to be closed when religious orders were removed from public schools after the revolution of 1910 and was later as offices. In 1972 it was moved to the present site to house a geographical museum, with displays also showing how an office would have looked at the time of the Portuguese geographical expeditions. Today it houses the cultural heritage authority of Mozambique.

One of the most beautiful and green spaces in Maputo. If you do the tour on Saturday you will find it even more interesting as you will see a lot of wedding celebrations going on – a lot of dancing, singing and happiness.

But no matter the day you do the tour, the big fruit bats will be there for you (a bit of safari in the city).

Before independence, the garden was called Vasco da Gama, in homage to the Portuguese explorer but right after independence the name changed, just like the name of the city, avenues, etc (we will explain you during the tour the reason why we had all these changes).

The local horticulture and floriculture society had already occupied the lower part of the terrain since 1885. The upper part was originally the garden of the villa Joia. Thomas honey joined the two together in 1907 and designed them the way they are now. Thomas honey had previously designed gardens to the sultan of Turkey and the king of Greece. The entrance arch in neo – Manueline style was put up in 1924 on the occasion of the 400^th anniversary of Vasco da Gama’s death.

Inside the gardens it is also possible to see a small cast iron “wallace” water fountain with four caryatides supporting a dome made by Fonderies d’Art du Val d’Osne in 1872. Many of these still exist in Paris and are named after the benefactor, Sir Richard Wallace, who erected them in order to provide safe drinking water.  How did it come to Maputo? On theory  it was brought  here as a gift  by French Engineer  Eugène François Tissot, who had acquired the Lourenço Marques  drinking water concession in1985. Tissot incidentally met a dramatic death – he first killed his wife and daughter and them himself with a pistol.

The best market in Maputo – fresh and clean – was built in 1901 by David Carvalho with iron elements imported from Belgium.

Come here if you want to get ingredients for a very Mozambican dish. You can buy here Cassava leaves to prepare the famous Matapa with prawns and even get tips from the ladies on how to make it.

Mozambique offers the most the most delicious dishes distilled from its fascinating and rich history. Arabic, Portuguese, Chinese, British and Indian influences have all been integrated using indigenous ingredients and cooking methods. The Portuguese influence has greatly impacted the cuisine of Mozambique, such as, Mandioca (a starchy root of Brazilian origin), cashew nuts (also from Brazil) and bread

The use of spices and seasonings such as onions, garlic, sweet peppers, bay leaves, lemons, fresh coriander, paprika, cinnamon and of course “piripiri” chill peppers, with wine (also introduced by the Portuguese)

Over the time, the culinary skills of the local chefs and women have developed into an unique and delicious array of stews and curries. But it is often simplicity that offers the most delicious experience. Seafood is fresh and abundant and so grilled prawns, lobsters, calamari and a variety of tropical fish and clams are with just salt, a squeeze of lemon, garlic and perhaps a dash of piripiri (hot chili sauce). Eating local traditional dishes, that differ slightly with location in the country, such as Matapa, will be fulfilling experience to any visitor.

If you get Matapa or something else in the market, I sure the ladies will even help you, giving you tips on how to prepare it

We also stop to try some local fruits – Massala, Ata, Coração de boi, or the one that calls your attention.

organize text

the mosque on Rua da mesquita was the first mosque in Maputo, stated in wood and zinc as most of the constructions in this area. The lower façade is of 1887, with parts added on in 1902, the mosque itself is new. This was the area where the Indian population lived.

The mosque also shows how good the relations between the different religious groups are, considering that this southern part of the country is mostly Christian and the biggest part of the Muslim community is on the northern part of the country. The country is mostly Christian but there are no religious conflicts between the most different religious groups.

It is sometimes said to be the most beautiful in the southern Africa. The Maputo central station is on an America magazine list of the most beautiful train stations worldwide as the 3^rd most beautiful. We are not going to tell you which ones make the Top Ten list and will keep it as a surprise for when we go in the train station and see the photo exposition of the list.

The train station was built in 1908 – 1910 and designed by Alfredo Augusto Lisboa de Lima, Mário Veiga and José Cristian da Paula Ferreira da Costa (and not Gustave Eiffel as some people believe), and constructed by the local builders Buccellato & Brother. Pietro Buccellato did all the work on stucco; the cupola was pre-fabricated in south Africa. Two old steam locomotives can be seen displayed when you enter. One of them =, the Gaza or No.1 used to travel on the narrow gauge railroad between Xai-Xai and Manjacaze and the branch line beyond, the other was the first model to run between Maputo and Pretoria. There are not many passanger trains running anymore and they essentially serve poorer suburbs south Africa and Marracuene. Near the end of the rails on the left in the former waiting room is an active gallery run by the cultural organization Kulungwana. Before the gallery you can also stop for a drink or lunch in the Xitimela (train) restaurant.

The train station is quite popular. Some of the scenes for the movie blood diamond by Leonardo DiCaprio were shot here.

New Orleans in Maputo, that is the feeling most people who have been to New Orleans have when they walk through this street. Called Araujo street before independence, the street started as a residencies street, but because of its location – close to the harbor –  it started to become a bit busier with lots of hotels, bars, most of them run down nowadays. it is a treasure of French colonial architecture with buildings with their iron pillars and varandas during the day, and the street that doesn’t sleep during the night. Bagamoyo is a red light district and the street where Leonardo DiCaprio had other set of scenes for the movie Blood Diomond

Natural history Museum (starting point): located in the Praça Travessia do Zambeze, the museum used to be called Museu Álvaro de Castro and was built in 1931 – 1933 in neo – Manueline (a kind of Portuguese gothic style ) by the municipal engineer António Ribeiro de Mendonça. The original idea had been to build a school. Worth mentioning are the collection of elephant fetuses aged 1 month to 20 months and realistic wildlife scenes (e.g. lioness tearing a zebra carcass), both are to be found in the big room downstairs. Taxidermist Peão Lopes made them, and nowadays they seem a bit dusty and not the state of the art. The elephant fetuses are said to be result of land clearance south of Maputo in the early 20^th century during which around 2000 elephants were killed. There are also two rooms of traditional African art. Around the building threre are the annexes, built by architect João José Tinoco,   in 1965. They are decorated with two mural paintings by Malangatana, one was painted in 1977/79 in two phases and depicts yhe fight of man in nature; the other was painted in 1989.  In the workshop  annex (onto which the first mural is painted) is the atelier of famous Makonde pottery  artist  Reinata Sadimba who works here weekdays. It is one of the most exciting and authentic experiences in Maputo to see her at work. The prime minister of the time Pascoal Mocumbi and many others invited her to come to Maputo and work in the Museum.

Josina Machel secondary school: The high school was previously called Liceu Salazar (for the boys) and Dona Ana Costa Portugal (for the girl) and used to have a stone statue of the dictator in its courtyard; which was damaged by an explosion and had to be replaced in 1964 by a bronze version. Planned by architect Costa e Silva as a flagship school essentially for the white population of Mozambique. This was the largest school project ever in Portugal or its colonies and included a huge assembly hall, physics and chemistry labs and even a swimming pool. Although monumental in appearance it is actually modernist in style and set the standard for years to come in terms of adaptation to local climatic conditions. Apart from the shading galleries on both sides of the classrooms and beta windows allowing for cross ventilation, it has covered walkways protecting against sun and rain and if you look at the roof you can see that it is made of two layers with ventilation slats in between.  In the reception area there is still the original armchairs and on the billboard behind glass there are two photos of Josina Machel (first wife of Samora Machel , the first president – she died during the liberation war). On the side facing the Rua das Lusiadas we can see murals of Malangatana, which, sadly, are much deteriorated.

Synagogue: The Jewish Synagogue was designed in 1926 by Couto Martins of the Public Works Department in the Portuguese Baroque revival style; the constructor was Raimundo Moreira. The congregation was founded in 1899 by Reverend Dr. Joseph Herman Hertz who stayed in Lourenço Marques for a week on his way into exile to Durban from Johannesburg where president Kruger had made him leave because of his pro-british opinios. During his brief stay, he forged concensus in the community that there had to be a cementery,a synagogue and a Jewish education. When the synagogue was built, there were actually only 30 Jews in Lourenço Marques who came from Portugal, Spain, the Netherlands and Easter European nations. By 1942 due to refugeed from Central and Eastern Europe the Jewish population reached its peak with around 500 mebmers.

Nucleo De arte: Artists association, school for many Mozambican artists. There is a really nice gallery and ateliers of the artists working there. The artists are always happy to let people see them working on their paintings and sculptures. Eugenio Mucavele, always calm and concentrated, is one of the most if not the most experienced artist we always meet when we go to Nucleo

Vila Algarve: built in 1934 by architect Augusto da Silva Pinto and engineer Alfredo Soares in the “português suave” style for Joé dos Santos Rutino who was a photographer and had a stationary shop but more lucratively also held the lottery concession. He came from the Algarve region in Portugal. The elaborate hand painted tiles (azulejos) were produced by the Aleluia company. In 1952 the Portuguese  secret police PIDE took over the building . in the basement was the interrogation chamber called Kula, which in Shangaan means, “where one us eaten up”. Franciso Langa or “Chico Feio” was the main torturer here. Langa suffered a violent death after independence in 1975 – he was cut to pieces in his house

Greek orthodox Church: Architect  Evan Lembros built it in the 1950’s. inside it is covered with frescoes by Helen Lieros from Zimbabwe, who was invited to do so by cathedral  custodian and Greek Honorary Counsil George Tsihlakis in 1995. They were painted over a span of 8 years – free of charge

Wedding palace:The Palácio de Casamentos, the marriage palace was built in 1931 – 1934 by Agapus Nicolau and Nicolas Kassimatis as the “ateneu Grego”, the community center of the Greek colony. It was open to all, one of the favorite events being its well-known dance matinees. Inside it is possible to see how civil  marriages are performed with style and singing.  There are a few high quality artworks, a huge painting by Malangatana of 1979/80”the long passage towards marriage”, a carved pilar by Alberto Chissano and in the basement two painted concrete reliefs.

The dragon: Was built by Pancho Guedes in 1951. There is a mosaic of a dragon in the space underneath the apartments. Also pebbled outer wall.

Twin buildings: Was built by Pancho Guedes in 1952 a little bit in the style of Catalan architect Gaudi

Polana: was commissioned by the Delagoa Bay Lands Syndicate, whose local representative was Leo Cohen. The building was completed in 1922. It is said to have been designed by Sir Herbert Baker (who also designed the Union Buildings in Pretoria), but the responsible architect was actually Walter Reid, the contractor was Hugh Le May. Polana was the name of the African Chief who had lived near the site, whose lands had been sold to sommerschield  without compensation and whose descendants were finally evicted from the area in 1946. The tramway at that time came up to the hotel. There were tennis courts and a golf course (the golf club had been laid out in 1914 in the area where the “lemon squeezer” church is today). The hope was that Maputo would become the preferred holiday destination for wealthy people from Transvaal. Prior to independence around a million tourists came to Lourenço Marques from South Africa alone every year. They came for the latin atmosphere, the fado, the nightlife, the beaches, the Portuguese wines, the good beer, the famous shrimps and also for big-game hunting further north. At the time the Polana was one of the most modern hotels in the hemisphere and seemed quite out of place in the still rather backward Lourenço Marques. In 1936 the hotel was sold to I. W. Schlesinger. His son in turn sold it to a Portuguese group in 1963. The hotel was a center of espionage during the Second World War. Portugal was neutral and it was here that spies both of the Axis and Allies met with their sources. The British spy Malcolm Muggeridge was pitched against Italian Consul  Umberto Campani and Lutpold Werz of the German Consulate. This were supplying information to German submarines lying in wait in the waters between Mozambique and Madagascar, preying on allied ships supplying the battle theaters of Russia, Egypt and India.

Prometeus building: Pancho Guedes built it In 1951 in what he terms as in his own “stiloguedes” style and he was immensely proud of it.  He said it was inspired by the art of Picasso. Others say it is uninhabitable – and indeed it has since been much changed. It used to be to top heavy in appearance standing on central pillars until the parking space below the building was filled in.

Lemon squeezer: the lemon squeezer or Polana Church was built in 1962 by Nuno Craveiro Lopes (son of the former Portuguese president). There is a miniature replica in the garden on the corner. It is also impressive inside. Sociedad Mauméjean Hermanos in Madrid produced the stained glass.it is commonly called lemon squeezer or inverted flower because of its shape.

FEIMA: handicraft market with nice restaurants. This is the ideal place to buy souvenirs to take back home. From fridge magnets to capulanas